Rusty_OToole

If money is an issue think carefully about making any changes. It may look cheaper but it won't be because one thing leads to another. The cheapest way out would be to rebuild the engine you have or if the rod is sticking through the block, find another Plymouth/Dodge engine. They aren't that rare and a lot of guys are changing them out.

218 and 230 crankshaft will interchange IF you use the matching connecting rods. The long stroke crank has shorter rods. The pistons are the same.

You can buy a pressure regulator at the hardware store or auto parts store. They are not very expensive. The regulator just goes in line with the air hose. There are small units that go right on the paint gun. If you add a dryer ( a good idea for painting) you will need to mount it on the wall because it will be too big . A Y or T connection will do to hook up an extra tank it does not have to be fancy. It means you have to wait a bit before the air pressure builds up, not usually a problem as you can leave the compressor running while you get ready, mix the paint etc. Go ahead and try the compressor as is and see how it works. Does it have an adjustable pressure switch or regulator now? Possibly even an air trap or dryer?

I got a set of 3 gravity feed spray guns at Princess Auto for $89. They work fine. For painting small parts like wheels etc. you don't run out of air. You should be able to find similar cheap spray guns at Harbor Freight and similar places. For an ordinary V belt, you can get them at the hardware store. They are cheaper than for a car as they are a low speed belt. For bigger jobs I have a spare tank salvaged off a defunct compressor ($5 at the junk yard). I just connect it to the air line, let the pressure build up and have enough air to paint a car. For air tools etc no problem as you only use them for short burst. If I do run out of air just wait a minute till pressure builds up. One thing I did was fill the compressor crankcase with synthetic oil. It starts easier and runs better than with compressor oil, I think it pumps a little faster too. Go ahead and try your compressor out. I thought mine would be too small and only good for pumping up tires and blowing dust off things. The more I used it, the more I found it would do. If you are not in a hurry you can time things to let it pump up for a few minutes when the pressure gets low. This would not do in a commercial shop but for a hobbyist it works out OK. Another thing you may need is a pressure regulator. This allows you to set the compressor to 120 PSI and regulate the line pressure down to 35 PSI or less for painting. This makes a big difference in reserve pressure.

I have a 2 HP air compressor and use it for everything including painting whole cars and sandblasting. For things that take a lot of air I have an extra tank I connect up and this gives me some reserve. Otherwise you have to sandblast or paint for a few minutes then let it build up steam. I'm not saying it would run a commercial garage but for home use, for painting small parts, blowing things clean etc it works great. Also powering air tools it works fine. When I got it I thought it would only be a stop gap but it will do about 90% of what I need. If I need more air I think I will just buy another 2 HP compressor and run them both at once. One reason for buying the little guy is, I do not have 220 volts in my garage to run a big compressor. The little 2HP job plugs into an ordinary wall outlet. So buy a belt and give it a go. A cheap low speed belt from the hardware store should do. Gamble $5 bucks and see how you like it. What have you got to lose?

Back before automatic transmissions cars were made to do EVERYTHING in high gear including idle down to 5 mph and pull away without a buck. This was the test of a quality motor. No wonder they geared them so low. Today we don't mind gearing down for a hill or in traffic. The higher speed rear axle gear is a good idea if you can get one for your car.

There is supposed to be a pipe from the wiper motor to the vacuum pump then from the vacuum pump to the INTAKE manifold. The vacuum pump (on the fuel pump) should have 2 pipes and they should be marked which goes to the manifold and which to the wiper motor. Here is how the system works. Normally, intake manifold vacuum powers the wipers. When vacuum is low, such as when accelerating or climbing a hill, the vacuum pump takes over. Your motor probably needs to be oiled. There is a procedure for this which has been discussed here before. If you do a search you should find it. All Trico wiper motors are oiled the same way no matter what kind of car they are on.

Old time upholstery shops had a machine to comb out the horse hair. This fluffs it back up and makes it about 3 or 4 times bigger than the old packed down stuff you took out. The old horse hair can be reused. You will have to ask around and see if there is an old time upholsterer that has the machine.

There were American made tin toys and even cast iron toys. Japan in the 50s had a lower cost of labor and made a lot of items like toys, transistor radios, etc that required hand work. Later they moved on to motorcycles, cars, etc. and became more prosperous. Not that the US couldn't have made such toys but they would have been priced out of the market.

Does the car have shock absorbers? If so you do not need interleaf friction. They used to pry the leaves apart and lube with graphite grease. Some type of slider is a good idea if possible. I have taken apart leaf springs, ground the notches out and smoothed the ends, then put them together with grease and screen in between, and wrapped with friction tape then painted with Varithane. If there are no shock absorbers do not be surprised if one spring leaf is upside down! Chevs came that way in the twenties, the upside down leaf increased friction to act as a primitive shock absorber.

Fuel gauge sender (in the tank) all the same Plymouth, Dodge, DeSoto, Chrysler up to 1955 (1956 up are 12 volt). Gas tanks the same too, 1949 to 52 P, D, D, C except the New Yorker and Imperial may be bigger? But all the six cylinder cars interchange. All Chryslers used the same gauges so far as I know.Color might differ year to year, not sure about that part. 1949 to 52. Plym Dodge DeS had different instrument panels.

DeDion sold A LOT of what they called "loose engines" to other makers for cars, boats, stationary power plants etc. about 5000 per year in their heyday. Many cars used them including the first Pierce Arrows. They still turn up from time to time in Europe but be prepared to pay $2000 to $3000 for one. http://www.prewarcar.com/classifieds/part-ads/by-make/de-dion-bouton-4.html

Chryslers had a wrap around rear window in 1951 and 52 with divider bars. I always thought it had to do with making the curved glass, it was easier to make it in 3 pieces it was so big and curved so sharp at the ends. In later years they made much larger curved rear windows but in those days I think it was something new and untried.

The wood frame body was a lot quicker and cheaper to develop and tool. But more labor intensive to build. To tool up a full range of all steel bodies cost a fortune. Some of the smaller companies could not afford it. If you look closely at the modle lineups of some of the independents from the late 30s on you can see where they cut corners, such as using sedan doors in their coupes and skipping less popular models like convertible and coupe.

Go ahead and put a set of 1970 tires on your 1970 muscle car, take it up to 120 MPH and let us know what happens. As I am not a chemist or tire engineer don't go by me. The information I got, came from some long discussions on an Airstream trailer BBS. Heavy trailers have a lot of tire trouble but some long time Airstream owners have minimized the danger by using top quality tires, checking pressure frequently, having them balanced perfectly, and replacing them every 4 to 5 years no matter how good they look. This information came from the internet and therefore is obviously untrue. Check with your local tire dealer and see what the manufacturers say.

There was a car called a Marion Bobcat. If it is an original from 1909 it would be very rare. If it is a reproduction from the 50s or 60s not so much. Photos will help to identify it.

Have you tried your local Chrysler dealer?

It seems very likely your car's chassis was assembled in Kew England using parts imported from the United States or Canada. In those days many "American" cars sold in England and British Commonwealth countries, actually originated in Canada because there was no import duty to pay. I believe all the cars built in Kew were badged as Chryslers even if made from Plymouth and Dodge parts. This would account for the Carleton body as well. Are there any serial numbers on the engine or chassis? There should be a number stamped on a raised pad on the engine block, on the left side, near the front, at the top of the block, behind the generator. There could also be a chassis number stamped on the frame either behind the left front wheel or behind the left rear wheel. Finally there could be a plate on the firewall. North American built cars had a serial number plate on the left front door post but as your body was built in England it is possible it never had one.

The X frame is an obvious way to brace a frame from an engineering standpoint. It must have occurred to many early designers. Perhaps what discouraged them from using it, was interference with the drive shaft and rear axle. In front drive cars the designer did not have to worry. I know they did eventually incorporate the X frame into conventional cars. But it took a bit of doing.

Tires deteriorate over time. A tire 5 years old, has lost half it strength. Besides the carcass weakening, the rubber gets dried out and mummified. Someone might want your tires for show especially if they are OEM brands or red stripe or performance tires. If they were the exact same tire installed by the manufacturer of Road Runner, Corvette, Mustang, or other muscle car you could write your own ticket. Restorers will pay big money for the exact part their car came with BUT it has to be exact.

Some batteries stand up better if they are used regularly. You could try switching batteries with your daily driver every month or 2.

You don't see many Studebaker straight eights either, or dodo birds for that matter. Nash built a quality product and succeeded on their own terms for many years even as better known cars bit the dust. They still have a loyal following. There should be a Nash club web site where the real experts can enlighten you.

Nash made quality cars that offered features not available on other makes. You mention the high grade 9 bearing OHV straight eight. They also had dual ignition on their top models, meaning 2 spark plugs per cylinder. The Nash Weather Eye system was the first heating/ventilating system built into the car in the modern manner. Nash engines were well made and reliable. One of them finished in the money in the LeMans 24 hour race in 1952, under the hood of a Nash Healey sports car. Healey insiders considered it incredible that an American six cylinder engine costing only $250 could beat most of the world's best sports cars. The company was well managed but conservative. They resisted going into debt to expand production in the good years which allowed them to survive the bad years when bigger companies died. Nash is still around in a way. They morphed into American Motors and in 1958 dropped the Nash name in favor of Rambler, their most popular product at the time. Eventually they were taken over by Chrysler and their cars rebadged as Eagles. The Eagle platform gave birth to the larger front drive Chryslers of the 90s and it is possible a little Nash DNA is still lingering around in the front drive Chryslers and in the Jeep.

Is that Pete Best on the right?

Back in the fifties you could buy electronic ignition conversions or build your own from plans in popular mechanics or electronics magazines. One brand I have seen several times was Mark 10. The first car to offer them as factory optional equipment was Studebaker in 1961 or 62. They used the normal points distributor, but the points only acted as a switch to trigger the electronic unit. It fed the current to the coil. The result was supposed to be a hotter spark and less wear on the points. Everybody in the US went to pure electronic ignition in the early seventies. The newest car I have seen with points electronic ignition, is my 1974 Porsche 911. I replaced the burned out original module with a Ford thick film ignition module from the 90s. The ignition now works 10 times better than new and the Ford module cost about 1/100th the cost of the OEM Bosch. If you want to, you can change any points ignition car to electronic by adding the Ford module. As long as it is 12 volt negative ground. The plans and instructions are on the net if you do a search.